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Ashely currently works as a news writer for Polygon. After getting her Translation degree, she was hired as a guide and news writer for GameRant and TheGamer. She enjoyed working as an author for these sites for six years, and in 2026, she started at Polygon, where she is able to continue to do what she loves: writing about video games.
Fans looking forward to the Drunken Goddess Reflux demo are out of luck
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Drunken Goddess Reflux is an upcoming indie game where players must survive a night of drinking with a beautiful anime demon, Russian Roulette-style. It's certainly a unique concept, and the game has already amassed over 25,000 wishlists on Steam. While the game was supposed to have a demo during Steam Next Fest, the developers decided to cancel the demo's release at the last minute so the game wouldn't instigate a wave of generative AI-developed clones.
Drunken Goddess Reflux devs pull out of Steam Next Fest and hold closed demo for select players
Steam Next Fest is set to begin Monday, Oct. 19, and end Oct. 26. The purpose of this weeklong event is for developers to share demos of their upcoming games. It's a great initiative that lets players try out plenty of titles for free and helps developers publicize their games and gain wishlists on Steam.
Alliance Arts and Who You's upcoming game, Drunken Goddess Reflux, was going to release a Steam Next Fest demo on Oct. 19. However, just a few days before the event, Alliance Arts decided to pull the plug. The studio apologized to fans anticipating the demo on X, explaining that it could not move forward for two reasons.
First, it would be unable to monitor whether gameplay footage and streams would be in accordance with its publishing restrictions; second, it believed providing a demo would enable others to quickly produce clones using generative AI.
The use of AI in the video game industry has become an increasing concern for developers and players alike. While artificial intelligence might make the development process faster and improve efficiency, AI tools and vibe coding facilitate the creation of video game clones. If that were to happen with this demo, it's entirely possible that developers of the AI copycats could finish the game faster and publish it before Drunken Goddess Reflux even sees the light of day, possibly hindering Drunken Goddess Reflux's success upon release.
Thankfully, players aren't being completely cut off from getting the chance to try the game before release. Interested players can currently fill out an application form for access to closed test sessions on Who You's official Discord server. Drunken Goddess Reflux will then be officially released on Dec. 8.